Introduction
Design to Production’s Blade double-sided display unit with interactive touch technology is sure to captivate and impress with its sleek design. It has been selected by Volkswagen for a 20-unit pilot trial in showrooms around Australia.
The sleek Blade kiosk uses interactive touch technology from Zytronic to achieve its slim 40mm design
Design to Production’s Blade double-sided display unit with interactive touch technology is sure to captivate and impress with its sleek design. It has been selected by Volkswagen for a 20-unit pilot trial in showrooms around Australia.
The Blade features an incredibly small footprint and slim silhouette, at just 40mm thick, yet with a generous 55-inch double-sided HD multi-touch display. The high-performance capacitive touchscreens are powered by the latest ZXY500 projected capacitive touch controller. With the proprietary ASIC coupled with custom touch-detection algorithms, the touch sensors can be mounted almost directly in contact with the display surface, reducing parallax and enabling the super-slim form-factor.
Zytronic touch technology was part of the Blade’s specification from the earliest design phase: “For the Blade to be interactive, this was key,” confirms Design to Production director Peter Gordon. “That’s why we love Zytronic – they make the best high-performance capacitive touchscreens. The feedback we’ve received regarding the Blade has been very positive. People just can’t believe the Blade is touch enabled on both sides – they couldn’t figure out how we added touch and maintained such a slim profile. That’s a testament to the projected capacitive technology that Zytronic produces – it’s market leading.”
The Blade also includes a low-profile base plate, making it ideal for showrooms and tradeshows where it is not practical to have the unit permanently installed. The elegant design, rugged construction and customisable options enable it to be tailored to meet specific needs for applications in retail, hospitality, education and office environments. The small footprint and 55-inch display make it ideal to run promotions, advertising, wayfinding and interactive displays to catch attention where space is valuable or limited. It is also available in a ceiling-hung configuration, for areas where floor space is at a premium. All it needs is to be plugged in to mains power.
The unit is built to exacting standards in Sydney, by the Design to Production manufacturing team. “We use state-of-the-art equipment and only the best manufacturing techniques,” explains Peter Gordon. “There are other double-sided kiosk and signage products in the market but few are touch enabled. Those that are, use inferior touch technology, and are noticeably chunkier as a result. The Blade is a first in that regard.”
More responsive than its rivals, the Blade is sure to captivate showroom visitors. Its inbuilt content invites patrons to tap an on-screen icon to request more information. A range of brochures are available, and the customer can choose to have material emailed to them immediately. The Volkswagen sales team are also alerted for follow-up regarding the vehicle the user is interested in, as well as their name, along with age and gender data, which is derived from the real-time attention analytics solution provided by digital signage experts Quividi.
Peter Gordon adds: “There are myriad potential applications for the Blade.” Design to Production is even discussing the idea of using the unit to entertain children with interactive car showroom games (‘How many bales of hay can you fit in the back of a VW Amarok?’), acknowledging that having the family entertained encourages patrons to dwell longer and take the time required to make such a significant decision as the purchase of a new car.
Finally, for Peter Gordon the Blade’s magic is all in the slender profile, and the success of future product development remains in concealing the touch technology as to be almost invisible. Quite simply: “We’ve been manufacturing kiosks for quite some time; we know what impresses people; and it’s the thickness of the unit that is always the key. The slimmer that silhouette; the more impressive the kiosk.”
Key features:
“We’ve been manufacturing kiosks for quite some time; we know what impresses people; and it’s the thickness of the unit that is always the key. The slimmer that silhouette; the more impressive the kiosk – hence the name, Blade. With their latest ZXY500 touch controller, Zytronic leads the market in this respect. I mean, Zytronic must be doing something right because <everyone> knows they’re the best!”
Peter Gordon, Production Director, Design to Production
